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The new COVID rules meant switching from renting 3 separate rooms with a shared bath to renting my upstairs as a 3 BR apartment. I expect that the young backpackers and budget Aussies will be replaced by families. Latest check on Air in the area shows most 3BR places fully booked, so I expect to fill up the calendar quickly, which means that I need as many eyes looking to find glitches in my new listing at
Looks bright, airy, clean and the bedrooms look like they are roomy and comfortable. Don’t add bedskirts or shams. The less stuff to clean the better and they only end up on the floor. Because you have platform beds, I’d tuck the comforters/duvets under the mattress all around. Like this picture. It will make the room look tidier and more expensive. . Try to get a brighter picture of the bathroom?
I would use the first bedroom picture as the initial shot, not the drawing of the house. People don’t read. You may get a confused person who thinks they are getting the whole house (I am speaking from experience here.) Also not evident in the charming drawing is where the guest quarters actually are.
Use whatever basic photo app to lighten all the pics a bit, tho not unrealistically so.
Show the entire dining table in the kitchen, which will help your target family audience decide if they will fit nicely.
Smile bigger for your profile picture?
Initial sentence “I’m happy to re-open Nordling House . . .” will be meaningless to new bookers. Delete that and start your description with “The apartment, for COVID-vaccinated guests, is in the top floor of the house,”. Again, you’re lucky if the guest reads the first sentence, so put the most vital, important bit there. Move the house history to the end.
Edit: If you want to tart it up a bit “The 3-bedroom apartment, for COVID-vaccinated guests, spans the entire top floor of the house, and has a private entrance via an exterior stair.”
I’m making up the entrance configuration because I can’t tell from your description, but I would definitely mention the private entrance as you have to do a lot of scrolling to find it in the amenities list, and it’s a selling point.
Adding more photos of what is seen outside views from the guests windows? A real photo of the outside showing with arrows which rooms? In general more photos and a few more fancy touches. A big enough rug, or another rug on the other side of the bed.
My two cents. It seems a little confusing to me about the kitchen and bath. Is the bath upstairs? Is the kitchen down and is that the place that is shared with you?
Not being critical, but that’s not clear to me and I read and reread the description.
It was also a bit confusing to me if the “shared kitchen and bath” are shared with you, the host? If so, would it be correct to call it an entire home/apartment? Seems like more of a guest suite. If the kitchen and bath are private and part of the 3 bedroom rental, I would take out the word “shared.”
Beds for 2 people need bedside tables and lamps on both sides of the bed.
Also, while it may be 3 different bedrooms you have pictured, it looks to me like all the same bedroom, because the bedding, curtains, etc are all the same. I would try to make each bedroom unique in some way, so it’s evident that they are 3 different spaces.
I agree they need a woman’s (or a gay man’s) touch.
More photos. And your photos are dark. Some outside shots. Kitchen, bedroom and bathroom shots from a couple different angles.
And I agree, while I like the drawing of the house, get rid of it- you’ll have non-reader guests showing up thinking they get the entire house and being upset that you live downstairs.
Why I’ll update the pix once I’m done. I’ve got duvet covers with matching pillow shams, but I don’t do decorative pillows because they always end up hidden in the closet or get dirty when they get thrown on the floor, and are yet another thing to wash.
Thanks! I will be updating pix as soon as the rooms are picture ready, and use my new Nikon instead of my phone.
The bedding and curtains are the same to keep cleaning and changeovers simpler. The plan is to have the art, which I’m slowly acquiring, be the focus for the rooms.
This is kind of a problem. The upstairs and downstairs share the same front entrance. There is an exterior stair on the rear of the building, which is also the required fire exit, but I prefer that guests not use it because 1) the would be going by my bedroom window, and 2) because they might be surprised at night by a bear in the back garden, which probably wouldn’t lead to great reviews.
The inner entry way has doors on either side (my living room and kitchen, with the stairway to the rental in the middle.
So do I say it’s a shared entry way?
Thanks for your tips about the wording. Now to back washing windows and waxing floors on this beautiful sunny day. I’ll check back later for more comments before I edit and open dates.
@NordlingHouse Yes, it’s a shared entry. You can explain the configuration in more detail in your description, so they realize that doesn’t entail them being able to see into your private quarters or vice versa. Take a photo of it.
I’m a little confused as to why you asked for feedback in your new listing, when the photo gallery isn’t updated to how you will show things?
I understand the same curtains in all rooms, all I was saying is that it makes all the rooms look like the same room, so could confuse guests. I also understand not using useless decorative pillows. But different bed covers would be distinguishing, or maybe different color throw rugs.
Hmmm. Where is the keypad lock? On your front door or on a door to the rental at the top of the stairs?
“Enter our home through the shared foyer then go up the stairs to your private apartment.” Although I would only say that if there actually a door at the top of the stairs.
If the apartment open to the stairwell, then maybe:
“Enter our home through the shared foyer, then up the stairs where you will have the entire second floor to yourself.” And remove the “private entrance” checked amenity.
I think it is best to expend a few words to be very clear about the entry and doors as you are adverting it as “Entire Home – You’ll have the apartment to yourself.”
As a guest, I would be a little taken aback if the second floor is open to the stairwell and I wasn’t aware in advance. I would be concerned about coming in late, singing Happy Birthday in the kitchen, watching sports on my computer loudly, or whatever.
I stayed in a basement apartment once with a private outside entrance, but the gregarious host promptly banged on his interior door to the basement stairs and, as soon as I answered, entered bearing banana bread. And I noticed I could not lock that door.
@dpfromva I’m a bit of a gregarious host but delivered some polenta pound cake to my present guests before they arrived.
I also had a entry that opened directly into my living room and over the winter I had the entryway closed in. So, now when guests are here they have a private entry to the 2nd floor and I use alternate exit doors. When there are no guests I use the front entry.
. Try to get a brighter picture of the bathroom?